Virtual Reality News and Research

RSS

Cork University Hospital uses a computer simulation system in its clinical trials

SensAble Technologies, Inc., announced that its customer, the Cork University Hospital, is leading clinical trials in two European hospitals using a haptically-enabled computer simulation system for testing physician competency in administering spinal anesthesia.

20 Oct 2009

Virtual Reality Exposure Treatment to help tackle driving phobias

Researchers at The University of Manchester have recruited volunteers with a variety of driving phobias to test whether virtual reality can be used alongside conventional psychological therapies to help tackle their fears.

From The University of Manchester 20 Oct 2009

$Online education programs for medical professionals at a fraction of the cost of travel-based programs$

Online education programs for medical professionals at a fraction of the cost of travel-based programs

With business travel budgets expected to remain tight through 2010, online clinical best practice programs may offer the healthcare industry its best educational value, according to Sara McMannus, Program Manager of GE Healthcare’s Global Clinical Best Practice Education. “Vendor-neutral, online programs provide education on-demand at a fraction of the cost of travel-based programs,” she said.

19 Oct 2009

New virtual reality training programme test perceptual skills of rugby players

Team members from Ulster Rugby have been working with researchers in the School of Psychology at Queen's on a range of virtual training scenarios that test expert players' perceptual skills.

15 Oct 2009

NICoE to study how brain works after sustaining combat-related injury using Elekta Neuromag

Projected to open in mid 2010, the National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE) is a facility dedicated to the study and care of military personnel and veterans suffering from traumatic brain injury (TBI) and psychological health issues. Using Elekta Neuromag®, an advanced magnetoencephalography (MEG) device, NICoE plans to shed light on how the brain works after sustaining combat-related injury.

From Elekta 15 Oct 2009

It is possible to communicate through power of thought alone: Study

New research from the University of Southampton has demonstrated that it is possible for communication from person to person through the power of thought alone.

6 Oct 2009

Two new products released by Simbionix USA Corporation

Simbionix USA Corporation, the world's leading developer of medical simulation systems, just released two new products: a new Laparoscopic Essential Tasks Module for its LAP Mentor(TM) and a breakthrough technology for patient-specific simulation based on actual patient data - the PROcedure Rehearsal Studio(TM).

21 Sep 2009

New research on post-traumatic stress disorder to be presented at MHRF

New research on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is being presented this week at the Military Health Research Forum (MHRF), a scientific conference hosted by the Department of Defense (DOD) Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). Depending on the conflict in which they served, 10 to 30 percent of soldiers who have spent time in war zones experience the debilitating and life-altering symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

2 Sep 2009

St. Jude Medical opens first Advanced Learning Center in Brussels

St. Jude Medical, Inc. (NYSE:STJ) today announced the official opening of the St. Jude Medical Advanced Learning Center, in Brussels, Belgium, offering education and training in advanced, evidence-based therapies for physicians who treat heart disease.

28 Aug 2009

Max-Planck scientists show that people really walk in circles when lost

Scientists in the Multisensory Perception and Action Group at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in T-bingen, led by Jan Souman and Marc Ernst, have now presented the first empirical evidence that people really walk in circles when they do not have reliable cues to their walking direction. Their study, published today in the journal Current Biology, examined the walking trajectories of people who walked for several hours in the Sahara desert (Tunisia) and in the Bienwald forest area (Germany).

21 Aug 2009

Virtual reality users adjust their identity to be consistent with that of their avatars

Creating a Second Life avatar, or virtual representation of oneself, that is thin and physically fit may encourage individuals to become healthier and more physically fit in their real lives, according to a study by researchers at RTI International.

4 Aug 2009

Research reveals that sick children do not always have their pain-relief needs met

Despite great effort to reduce anxiety, fear and pain, related to health care, children still considered "being in pain" as the worst aspect of their procedure, according to Karin Enskär, associate professor at the School of Health Sciences, Jönköping, Sweden.

6 Jul 2009

Nintendo Wii may help treat symptoms of Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disease that impairs motor skills. Dr. Herz theorized that the popular computer game console, which simulates various sports and activities, could improve coordination, reflexes and other movement-related skills, but he found additional benefits as well.

12 Jun 2009

Repeated VR distraction reduces pain perception

Distraction through virtual-reality technology was found to reduce pain perceptions after repeated exposures in a University of Maryland study published in The Journal of Pain.

21 Apr 2009

Augmented reality improves training for keyhole surgery

Researcher Sanne Botden has improved the training methods for surgeons who perform keyhole operations. At present, a relatively large number of errors are made during surgery of this kind. She defends her doctoral dissertation at Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands on Wednesday, 1 April.

31 Mar 2009

Researchers show how the hippocampus records memory

It may be possible to "read" a person's memories just by looking at brain activity, according to research carried out by Wellcome Trust scientists.

12 Mar 2009

Cracking the spatial memory code

Researchers have shown that they can tell where a person is "standing" within a virtual reality room on the basis of the pattern of activity in the brain alone.

12 Mar 2009

New NYP course: Surgical approaches to the skull base

The skull base is not just a simple platform for the brain but an anatomically intricate area with an array of connections necessary to the body's essential functions.

8 Mar 2009

Robotic therapy may reduce stroke physical disability years later

Robot-assisted therapy may help stroke patients attain gains in their physical abilities long after the stroke, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2009.

20 Feb 2009

Cell phones dangerous for child pedestrians

Children who talk on cell phones while crossing streets are at a higher risk for injuries or death in a pedestrian accident, said psychologists at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in a new study that will appear in the February issue of Pediatrics.

27 Jan 2009